Uranium glass - science stuff

[JC in GB]

Well all, a co-worker of mine collects vintage glass and she was curious why it glowed so brightly under UV light. Being the science nerd I am, I grabbed my Geiger counter and viola!

The first pic is the normal background radiation in the room. Usually around 150 nSV/hr.

The second pic is with the counter placed on top of the glass candy dish. 1.25 uSV/hr.

1.25 uSV/hr will give you your yearly radiation exposure in 30 days.

Here is another item I stumbled upon. Would you buy your kids this?

World's Most Dangerous Toy? Radioactive Atomic Energy Lab Kit with Uranium (1950) - Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists

Virtual Tour: Turn Back the Clock “] The Gilbert U-238 Atomic Energy Lab was an actual radioactive toy and learning set sold in the early 1950s. The $49.50 set came with four samples of uranium-bearing ores (autunite, torbernite, uraninite, and carnotite), as well as a Geiger-Mueller radiation...

thebulletin.org

JC

 

[cutplug]

The Gilbert Chemistry kits were the Bomb! I remember getting the leftovers from my older
brothers. My first foray into gun powder.
and the big bottle of mercury we played with was a gas too!

 

[RoHa]

Well all, a co-worker of mine collects vintage glass and she was curious why it glowed so brightly under UV light. Being the science nerd I am, I grabbed my Geiger counter and viola!

The first pic is the normal background radiation in the room. Usually around 150 nSV/hr.

The second pic is with the counter placed on top of the glass candy dish. 1.25 uSV/hr.

1.25 uSV/hr will give you your yearly radiation exposure in 30 days.

Here is another item I stumbled upon. Would you buy your kids this?

World's Most Dangerous Toy? Radioactive Atomic Energy Lab Kit with Uranium (1950) - Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists

Virtual Tour: Turn Back the Clock “] The Gilbert U-238 Atomic Energy Lab was an actual radioactive toy and learning set sold in the early 1950s. The $49.50 set came with four samples of uranium-bearing ores (autunite, torbernite, uraninite, and carnotite), as well as a Geiger-Mueller radiation...

thebulletin.org

JC

This reminds me that some movie makers back in the day used asbestos as artificial snow(Wizard of Oz is pretty infamous for that). So I'm not surprised this exists :D

 

[JLeonard]

Wonder how long she has had it in her house? Amazing the stuff we had around to play with and etc. Wonder we have lived as long as we have.
Jim

 

[Brokenhandle]

And we worry about eating too much bacon! We'll I don't, but my dr does! Lol

Ryan

 

[jcam222]

My daughter collects this stuff

 

[JC in GB]

This reminds me that some movie makers back in the day used asbestos as artificial snow(Wizard of Oz is pretty infamous for that). So I'm not surprised this exists :D

My daughter collects this stuff

I will be bringing my counter to the thrift stores hence forth.

 

[mneeley490]

The Gilbert Chemistry kits were the Bomb! I remember getting the leftovers from my older
brothers. My first foray into gun powder.
and the big bottle of mercury we played with was a gas too!

My best friend had one of those in the early 70's. He did make a big puddle of mercury, (also known as quicksilver, I think). We used to think it was pretty cool to roll it around in our hands. And yet I'm still here.

 

[JC in GB]

My best friend had one of those in the early 70's. He did make a big puddle of mercury, (also known as quicksilver, I think). We used to think it was pretty cool to roll it around in our hands. And yet I'm still here.

I am kind of amazed that I am still around after finding out how unsafe I was in the 70's.

Just an aside, a young lady was complaining how everything sucks now and I apologized to her for us using up all the fun in the 70's. I don't know, I thought it was funny...

JC

 

[JLeonard]

I am kind of amazed that I am still around after finding out how unsafe I was in the 70's.

Just an aside, a young lady was complaining how everything sucks now and I apologized to her for us using up all the fun in the 70's. I don't know, I thought it was funny...

JC

Well the 70's were the times with the best cars, drugs, free love, everything wouldnt kill ya like it does now. For sure sounds like more fun to me!
Jim

 

[gmc2003]

Well the 70's were the times with the best cars, drugs, free love, everything wouldnt kill ya like it does now. For sure sounds like more fun to me!
Jim

Not everything was great in the 70s. Remember Disco music was born in the 70s.

Chris

 

[SmokinEdge]

The Gilbert Chemistry kits were the Bomb! I remember getting the leftovers from my older
brothers. My first foray into gun powder.
and the big bottle of mercury we played with was a gas too!

I still have a bottle of mercury. Mesmerizing stuff I still giggle when I play with that stuff.

 

[mneeley490]

Mercury metal is not that toxic when held. The vapors are the issue since it is volatile. Thus the mad as a hatter phrase. The hat makers inhaled the vapor. methyl mercury is the real issue and is the form in river sediment and ends up accumulating in the food chain

Hmm, well as I recall, he made the silver metal mercury by heating mercuric oxide powder in a test tube. (I could be wrong on this, as I'm not a chemist and this was about 50 years ago when we were kids.) We probably did breathe some of it.

 

[old sarge]

NUTZ! eBay does not have that particular lab. Interesting to say the least. Great to have after dinner mints in a green glass dish.

 

[chp]

It’s been fun to read through this thread…radiation was in Curies and Rems. I know the US switched to SI units, but change is hard.

 

[bill1]

Well if the U wasn't in the candy dish it would be in the dirt under your house. Unless you sleep with the candy dish under your pillow, I wouldn't worry about it. Camping lantern mantles and Fiestaware ceramic dishes used to pretty hot too. Now you have to use a banana to get much of a reading in a radioactivity demo.